Set realistic expectations

I have met many a homeschool mom who was upset
because her three-year-old was not reading yet.

On the other hand, I have seen families who decide to homeschool with no direction or goals in mind. Children will follow your lead, so take the time to set clear and reasonable expectations.

I have watched as families tackle huge projects trying to cram a whole year of World History into one quarter and plan a World History Fair to culminate the experience. These are the same parents and kids who are burned out by Christmas and struggling to make it through each day!

Students will live up to your expectations, and if none exist, they will quickly adapt and really enjoy themselves for a time. However, by Halloween, kids long for the structure of school, and parents are thinking that the ghosts and ghouls knocking on their door look much more appealing than their bored and antsy children.

The individualized instruction that homeschooling provides opens up the door for students to master concepts much quicker than in a classroom full of distractions. However, it also makes it very easy to coast through the year without really accomplishing anything.

The answer to this struggle is…planning.

The key to careful planning is to know your child. What are his or her abilities? Struggles? Weaknesses? Passions? Putting a homeschool curriculum plan together that addresses all of these gives you the tools upfront to a successful school year.

A full-service academy like Bridgeway guides you through this planning stage through diagnostic placement testing, open dialogue and the expertise of certified teachers and trained staff members. We pinpoint where your child needs to begin in each subject based on skills, struggles and strengths. And the staff will work with you to ensure that your needs and academic desires are met.